• The European Union is a unique economic and political partnership between 27 European countries.
• The EU was created in the aftermath of WWII. The first steps were to foster economic cooperation: countries that trade with one another are economically interdependent and will thus avoid conflict.
• In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty was signed, replacing the EC with the EU.
• Maastricht Treaty established:
  • Common Foreign and Security Policy
  • Coordinated policy on asylum, immigration, drugs, and terrorism
  • EU citizenship, which allowed people to travel freely throughout the EU
  • Established a timetable for an economic and monetary union.
  • Specified the economic and budgetary criteria which would determine when countries were ready to join
• The EU actively promotes human rights and democracy and has the most ambitious emission reduction targets for fighting climate change in the world.

European coal and steel corporation

The European Coal and Steel Corporation (ECSC) was a supranational organization created in 1951 by the Treaty of Paris. It was created to help promote economic cooperation between six European countries: Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The ECSC was the first organization to govern supranational activities in Europe and was designed to help rebuild Europe after World War II. The ECSC helped to create a common market for coal and steel products in these countries, which helped to stimulate economic growth and reduce the likelihood of future conflict between them.